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Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter
AMENDED
February 16, 2006
H. 3922
Introduced by Reps. Witherspoon, Ott, Umphlett, Barfield, Cato, Bailey, Hagood, Bowers, Hardwick and Neilson
S. Printed 2/16/06--H.
Read the first time April 13, 2005.
TO AMEND TITLE 44, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO HEALTH, BY ADDING CHAPTER 18 SO AS TO ENACT THE "MERCURY SWITCH REMOVAL ACT OF 2005" IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE REDUCTIONS OF MERCURY IN THE ENVIRONMENT THROUGH REMOVAL AND COLLECTION OF MERCURY SWITCHES FROM MOTOR VEHICLES WEIGHING LESS THAN TWELVE THOUSAND POUNDS; TO PROVIDE THAT EVERY MANUFACTURER OF MOTOR VEHICLES SOLD IN THIS STATE TO WHICH THIS CHAPTER APPLIES SHALL DEVELOP A MERCURY MINIMIZATION PLAN TO BE FILED WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL; TO PROVIDE FOR CERTAIN COSTS WITH REGARD TO THE COLLECTION AND RECOVERY OF MERCURY SWITCHES TO BE PAID BY THE VEHICLE MANUFACTURER; TO PROVIDE FOR OTHER RELATED PROVISIONS PERTAINING TO THE RECYCLING, STORAGE, AND DISPOSAL OF MERCURY SWITCHES, INCLUDING DESIGNATING MERCURY SWITCHES AS UNIVERSAL WASTE AND REQUIRING THE DEPARTMENT TO PROMULGATE REGULATIONS FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF THESE SWITCHES; AND TO PROVIDE PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS.
Amend Title To Conform
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Chapter 96, Title 44 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 44-96-185. (A) For purposes of this section:
(1) 'Automobile Manufacturer' means a person, firm, association, partnership, corporation, governmental entity, organization, combination, or joint venture that is the last person in the production or assembly process of a new vehicle that has utilized mercury switches at any time since 1996.
(2) 'End-of-life vehicle' means a vehicle that is sold, given, or otherwise conveyed to a vehicle recycler or scrap recycling facility for the purpose of recycling.
(3) 'Mercury switch' means a mercury-containing capsule, commonly known as a 'bullet', that is part of a convenience light switch assembly.
(4) 'Scrap recycling facility' means a fixed location where machinery and equipment are utilized for processing and manufacturing scrap metal into prepared grades and whose principal product is scrap iron, scrap steel, or nonferrous metallic scrap for sale for remelting purposes.
(5) 'Vehicle' means a passenger automobile or passenger car, station wagon, truck, van, or sport utility vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of less than twelve thousand pounds.
(6) 'Vehicle recycler' means an individual or entity engaged in the business of acquiring, dismantling, or destroying six or more end-of-life vehicles in a calendar year for the primary purpose of resale of their parts.
(B) No person shall knowingly place an end of life vehicle into the production stream for a steel recycling facility in South Carolina containing a mercury switch, as defined in this section.
(C) Automobile manufacturers shall develop and bear the costs of operating in cooperation with the Department of Health and Environmental Control and within one hundred eighty days of the effective date of this section, an 'end of life vehicle solutions' (ELVS) program. This program must advance environmental efforts in the areas of vehicle recyclability, education and outreach, and the proper collection and disposal of mercury switches from end-of-life vehicles. At a minimum, the ELVS program must:
(1) provide a program contact to establish, implement, and oversee this program on behalf of ELVS while this section is in effect;
(2) provide guidance to the Department of Health and Environmental Control as to which vehicles may contain mercury switch assemblies, where they are located, and recommended procedures for removing these assemblies;
(3) provide educational and outreach materials to encourage the participation of vehicle recyclers in this program. This outreach program may include participation by ELVS in direct mailings, department workshops, and department site visits;
(4) provide collection containers to participating vehicle recyclers for mercury switches and switch assemblies to be collected pursuant to this program;
(5) provide a collection/transportation system to periodically collect and replace filled containers from vehicle recyclers when notified that the container is full or on a predetermined schedule established according to the Universal Waste Rules in South Carolina;
(6) engage a qualified universal waste management contractor to carry out ELVS activities consistent with this section;
(7) provide the department with an annual report identifying the vehicle recyclers that have a collection container at their facility;
(8) provide the department with an annual report of the quantity of mercury recycled pursuant to this program;
(9) participate in a joint evaluation of the program, including data considered necessary by the parties for program evaluation; and
(10) ensure that all records generated and maintained meet the requirements of the Universal Waste Rules in South Carolina.
(D) A person violating the provisions of subsection (B) is subject to a fine not to exceed two hundred dollars. This provision may be enforced by a state, county, or municipal law enforcement official or by the department.
(E) No person may recover any costs of response actions resulting from a release of hazardous substances from mercury switches from the owner or operator of an entity removing and properly disposing of mercury switches as authorized by this section, unless the owner or operator is grossly negligent in the removal, collection, or storage of the hazardous substance. Nothing in this section affects or modifies in any way the obligations or liability of a person under any other provision of state or federal law, including common law, for injury or damage resulting from the release of hazardous substances.
(F) The department may utilize funds from the Solid Waste Trust Fund, established pursuant to Section 44-96-120, for the administration of this program."
SECTION 2. Article 25, Chapter 6, Title 12 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 12-6-3525. A vehicle recycler or scrap recycling facility, as defined in Section 44-96-185, participating in the End-of-Life Vehicle Solutions (ELVS) Program, authorized pursuant to Section 44-96-185, is entitled to a credit in the amount of $2.50 for each mercury switch collected and submitted for disposal in accordance with the ELVS program. These credits may be used to reduce the taxpayer's corporate income tax liability imposed pursuant to Section 12-6-530, sales or use tax imposed by the State or any political subdivision of the State, corporate license fees imposed pursuant to Section 12-20-50, or any tax similar to these taxes. Any unused credits may be carried forward to subsequent taxable years until these credits are exhausted."
SECTION 3. Unless reinstated by the General Assembly, the provisions of Sections 44-96-185 and 12-6-3525 terminate on June 30, 2013, and these sections and all other laws and regulations governing, authorizing, or otherwise dealing with the removal of mercury switches from vehicles are deemed repealed on that date.
SECTION 4. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor and applies to mercury switches removed from vehicles after December 31, 2005, and the credits authorized pursuant to Section 12-6-3525 apply to taxable periods beginning after December 31, 2005.
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